Life After Death: Part 1
by Princess Melon
Summary: It all ended; the light vanished. But then she came and brought it back. She made him remember the good times he had, however few there were. The name he calls her is Haruki-san, to her dislike, and this is about the first few days after the accident.
1. Chapter 0

ONE SIDE

The clean glass pane broke as the young body was flown out the window. Traffic below halted their wheels to look at the boy who laid on the ground, a puddle of blood pouring out of the body.

Yukimi Kazuhiko and Yoite were in one of those cars.

Yoite ran out of the car and to Rokujo Miharu's side at once. At first there were borderline tears that appeared, but then rage covered his eyes and he began a fit, killing all everywhere, no matter who they were. Buildings were smashed, innocent lives killed, both of the Nabari and the non. Everything was destroyed in a manner that left only ivy to cultivate the devastation.

Then, when all the smoke had cleared and he saw the cataclysmic destruction he had caused, he looked down at Miharu, and fainted.

TWO SIDE

Three people were driving in a yellow Sedan in the middle of Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, near Tokyo.

"Haruki, when we get home you're going to get a beating! How dare you say no to your mother! How dare you say no to us! We're the ones who bathed you, who clothed you, who gave you a roof over your head! You owe us!"

"I don't owe you anything, Otou-san! Okaa-san! Everything is like default when you give birth to a child. I earned myself the grades I deserve for what I wanted; for that goal you set for me! That is enough of my payment! I shouldn't even be paying you to help me live! I live on my own!"

"In that disgusting place by the power lines, we know. But what about all those years of cleaning up after you? Of changing your diaper, feeding you… all that wasted time spent on you!"

"If you didn't want to do it, then why did you decide to keep me? What on earth was going through your screwed up minds? A child shouldn't have to pay their parents for their life!"

Komai Aiko turned around to face her daughter, Haruki, then grabbed her arm. "Then what's the reason of having a child if you don't get anything in return?" Just then the car stopped. Aiko looked at her husband. "What's the matter, Ayumu?"

"Someone fell out of a window…" He peeked over the dashboard and around the car in front of them to try and see the person who had fallen. A young man in a black trench coat ran out of the car ahead of them.

"You cruel beings! You have no right to your names!" Then the destruction began. The first things hit were the people on the streets. They all exploded. Then, one by one, the cars started melting, their passengers inside them. Haruki took this time to escape. She yanked her arm free and ran as fast as she could, as far as she could, but the crashing debris from the surrounding crumbling buildings blocked her many paths to safety. Something hit her hard on the head and then everything went black. She thought of herself dying and felt despair. But, at least she was away from her vice-like parents' grip.


	2. Chapter 1

TWO SIDE

Haruki's eyes began to open to a world of blur and confusion. The only sounds heard were of the resulting debris settling into their new homes on the once people-crowded streets. Where cars once sped, now pools of metal and burnt flesh lay. Where humans once populated the sidewalks, now torn shreds and pools of blood. Ruble was everywhere; it littered the streets like trash and homeless do in slums.

Haruki raised her head, pushing a few bricks and iron cast rods out of her way to see daylight; what was left of it, I mean. Smoke was in the air, everything seemed to have only just finished. What on earth had caused this? Such destruction on a mass scale… No earthquake known to man could liquidate vehicles and smother human flesh. Nothing known to man. Nothing known to these kinds of men.

The seventeen-year-old Haruki climbed out of her profound cage and tried to seek out the cause of the mess. There, no less than a hundred feet away from her, was a man that stood. He wore a black trench coat and a tan paperboy hat. His hands were gloved with cream colored leather.

She looked around and found the melted yellow Sedan with her parents' charred remains within the mess and smiled. She turned her head back to the man in black in time to see him collapse.

"Shinigami-sama! Shinigami-sama, are you alright?" she called out, working against the pain to reach the fallen death god. When she reached him, she saw he had fallen quite closely to another boy who was mudded in a pool of blood, a dark crimson color. A color people usually detest.

Haruki winced when the man in black coughed up blood and began to panic. The man who had saved her was dying! She looked around for the _Shinbanshi_ _Parking Lot_. Surely this man had not melted the cars there, right?

She was wrong. Most of the cars there were melted, too. Although, they weren't as badly damaged. Haruki managed to steal a pair of keys from a crisp man next to a vehicle and turned it on. The very poor sounds it made clearly meant it wouldn't last too long. Haruki only hoped it would last long enough.

She slipped the bleeding young boy into the back and then proceeded to place the death god into the passenger seat. The seat belts were melted firmly together, so there were no safety measures if the car suddenly decided to quit and spit them all out.

Haruki had sped the car enough to get to the power lines between Yokohama and Tokyo within the hour. The bleeding and dying men she had in her care needed professional attention, but they'd doubt anything she'd say. Especially if she said they came from main Yokohama… in fact, that was where the hospital was located.

The small half-melted BMW mini cooper peeled itself over the dusty ground as it made a turn off the road. It found a trail, and followed it around a bend to finally park under a stocky willow tree.

Her own wounds weren't many compared to these two men, Haruki decided, and put them first. She carried the short and small one bridal style to the cottage-like log house only about a hundred feet away. Her hurried step and rushed mood made her fumble with the keys for a moment before finally setting foot inside. She quickly slipped to the door to her right and set the young man on the bed in the guest room. Then she headed back for the death god…

"Heavy…" She lifted him up on her back and slammed the door shut only to have it fall off after Haruki took a few steps.

She set the man down on her couch and removed the man's trench coat and hat. As she slid off his gloves a gasp escaped her lips and memories over five years old flooded into her brain.

THREE SIDE -DREAM STATE: HARUKI-

"Haruki-chan. Stand up."

"But, Sofu…"

"I said stand! You will stand! How are you to become a great ninja like your Sofu or Sobo if you can't stand after receiving a hit! Now, stand!" The young ten-year-old Komai Haruki, sore from the numerous hits from her grandfather, stood and got herself ready for the next wave of attacks.

"I'm ready, Sofu."

"Yes, Haruki-chan… You are ready for Nabari…"

"Sofu, tell me about the forbidden techniques."

"Why?"

"Didn't Soba die because of one? Which one was it?"

Komai Osamu sighed deeply and turned his gaze to the distant trees. "Ah, Naoko… she was very straightforward, like her name; but that's beside the point. Your grandmother was very stubborn and wouldn't let a mission be left incomplete. She would usually run in and attack instead of devising a plan. I was always the brains of the missions…"

"Sofu, which forbidden technique did Soba die from? Tell me."

Osamu sighed. "It was Iga Village's 'kira' technique."

The young Haruki cocked her head to one side. "'Kira'? Can you explain that to me?"

"Eh, I don't see why not… Kira is very bad, for one. Not only does it hurt the desired target, but also it's user. A user of kira shoots his or her 'ki' into a target's body to tear them apart from the inside. But using this technique, as I have just told you, is very bad. The 'ki' you shoot into a target, doesn't ever come back."

"So it's like chiseling away at your life every time you use it, right? Why would some one do that?"

"I'm not certain, but surely those bad types of people who would sacrifice their own life for power. In the end, I guess, it all comes down to how afraid you are."

"What do you mean?"

"Are you more afraid of a powerless life, or a suffering death?"

"How is it suffering, Sofu?"

"As kira chisels away at the user's life, it also steals with it the five senses. You loose them, one by one, gradually, until you're nothing but a hollow shell. Don't you think not being able to have any senses as suffering?"

"Sofu, who would want to suffer such a fate?"

"I don't know. Maybe those who are lost and believe their fate to be suffering already."

"Those poor souls won't know what hit 'em…"

Osamu started laughing and rubbed Haruki's head. "Hahaha. Haruki-chan, you're such a pure soul. Even though your Soba was murdered by a kira user, you still pity them! I admire your kindness. Try to keep it, okay?"

"Sofu, this is going to be the last time I'll be seeing you, right? Otou-san and Okaa-san are taking me back, right?"

Osamu nodded his head softly. "I'll miss you, Haruki."

Tears started flowing. "I'll miss you, too, Sofu. Thank you for this knowledge."

TWO SIDE

The tips of his fingers were black with decay and reached half-way up his arm, almost passing his elbows. Haruki felt his hands and rubbed his arms. They felt soft and cold. They were very cold.

Haruki took off the man's boots and laid a warm quilt on him. Then she left to the guest room where the bleeding boy lay. If she were any lucky, he'd still be breathing.

But Haruki doesn't have any luck. The poor boy had no breath, he was no longer bleeding, and his body was icily cold. Haruki dropped to her knees and cried.

ONE SIDE

Yoite's eyes begin to open slowly. The fact that he was in an unfamiliar room didn't matter. The fact that he was surrounded by an unknown person's scent didn't matter. The fact that he was dying didn't matter. Nothing did now that Miharu was gone. Nothing was worth anything… He might as well destroy this structure along with himself. It certainly seemed like a good plan…

But then someone came in. It was a young woman wearing stylish clothes. Was he somewhere near Shibuya?

"Oh, you're awake," she said silently and paused for a moment as they stared at each other, the woman and Yoite. Then she smiled and set a tray of food down on he coffee table. "Hello, my name is Komai Haruki. Nice to finally meet you, Shinigami-sama." He winced. "Hm? You don't like it? How about… Kami-sama! It's more fitting, isn't it?"

He looked away from her. She puffed her cheeks. "If you don't like it say something. You don't have to ignore me."

"Yoite."

"Ah! I have your name! Yoite-shinigami-sama!"

"I'm not 'shinigami-sama'."

"But… you use 'kira,' right? That must mean you're afraid of a powerless life… I mean! I mean! Eh… I'm sorry, Yoite-shinigami-sama! I won't do it again!"

"Miharu…"

"Hm? 'Miharu'? Is that the boy that flew out the window onto the road…?"

Yoite shot up and pointed his finger at Haruki. "What did you do?" he shouted, but coughed up blood.

"Oh, my! One moment, one moment!" Haruki rushed into the kitchen and came back with a damp cloth. She quickly began to dab away the blood, first from his face and then down his white sweater. "Don't worry, I'll help you get better!"

"Don't touch me!" Yoite pushed Haruki away and she bumped into the table, knocking over the bowl of warm soup. He froze and stared at the hot steamy liquid spread over the table and onto the hardwood floor. Then he looked at Haruki, who's eyes were hidden. For a while, nothing was said.

"Yoite, I'm sorry. I don't know anything about you. I shouldn't have worried." She began to clean up the soup with the same bloody cloth she used to wipe Yoite. "Just let me get you back together and you can be on your way, I promise." She picked up the bowl and placed it on the tray.

"Why are you doing this? Even after I pushed you… why don't you get rid of me?"

Haruki looked up at him and smiled. "I told my Sofu that I'd keep the kindness in my heart… I know you're a kira user, the same kind of person that killed my Soba. I know you're loosing your five senses slowly… but I'd like to help! It's the least I can do for saving me."

Yoite raised an eyebrow. "What?"

Haruki dropped the cloth on the tray and sat on the floor next to the couch. "That outburst you had earlier today… it saved me." Yoite glanced at her fingers, bloodstained. His?

"How? All I can do is hurt and destroy… I can't help. I couldn't help Miharu, I can't help anyone."

"Oh, but you did! You see, I come from an abusive family that seems to be obsessed with leeching everything out of me. They have this weird idea that I owe them for everything they've done. I don't think it's fair, and neither did my Sofu or Soba. At the time you went into a fit, they were driving me home to beat me; do you know how scary that is! To know your fate and yet can't do anything to--" She caught herself before she finished. Of course Yoite knew. He knew of his fate as soon as he had accepted kira.

"I do know--"

"I know you know. I'm sorry; I couldn't help myself. There won't be anymore outbursts like that during your stay." Haruki stood with the tray in her hands.

"Where's Miharu?" Yoite asked in a rushed voice. A frown came on Haruki's lips.

"He's in that room." She pointed to a room behind the sofa next to the door. "The kitchen's right here and the washroom's here. You can go see Miharu if you'd like. But, like you expected, he's dead. I'm sorry… Um, if you need anything, I'll either be in the kitchen or upstairs. Goodbye." She turned and left to the kitchen, tray in hand.

Yoite sat up and stared at the door to the room Miharu was in. Did he want to see Miharu's dead body that badly? He grit his teeth and got up wearily. He took staggered steps to the door and opened it. He took two steps inside and let the door close behind him as he cried.


	3. Chapter 2

ONE SIDE

Why isn't he dead? Why, even after that fit he had earlier today? He should be coughing up blood and preparing himself to die. A life without Miharu, Yoite concluded, meant nothing.

TWO SIDE

Tick. Tick. Tick. Haruki stared at the clock on her bedside table as she lay on her bed. She could faintly hear the crying coming from below. She wanted to comfort the young man, to make him stop crying. "Yoite…" Her voice wafted through the attic loft; her bedroom. She shook her head to dissipate the despair and pity in her mind, and walked over to her desk to work on her Tokyo University application.

When stumped on a final set of questions, she growled and turned on the radio but what was on surprised her. It was the six o'clock news and they were reporting a list of the dead and missing. Haruki listened enthusiastically.

"Of the Kohaku family, Rumi, Yori, Umeko, and Takeshi. Of the Komai family, Ayumu, Aiko, and Haruki. Of the Manami family, Ren, Noriko, and Satomi. Of the Masami family--" She turned it off immediately and stared out into nothing.

"I'm dead?" Her body was not found at the site of the incident, but that didn't mean she was dead… she was missing.

Creaking came up the stairs. "Haruki-san…" She jumped and looked to the stairs.

"Oh, hi, Yoite-kun. What's up? Are you hungry?" Haruki stood.

Yoite shook his head. "What do you plan on doing? And why haven't I died yet?"

Haruki frowned. "You want to die, Yoite-kun?" He didn't respond, but instead looked down. Haruki walked next to Yoite and sat down on the stairs next to him. "Sit. Let's talk some things out, okay?"

He was hesitant at first, but he sat down. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Hmm. Well, since it seems to be really bothering you, why not Miharu-kun?" Yoite winced and his body shuddered. "Or, not…"

There was a pause. "It's fine. Go ahead." Despite his words, Haruki could feel the sadness and despair radiating off of Yoite's body. This made her sad.

"No. You don't want to talk about it, it's alright. We can talk about something else… hm, how about kira? Why did you choose to take on the forbidden technique that chisels away your life?"

FOUR SIDE -OMNIPRESENT-

Yoite stared at Haruki with wide eyes. How did she know? Was she a ninja? If she was, of what village? Was she Banten? She addressed Miharu casually… He hadn't seen her ever before…

Haruki started laughing. "Your face! Hahaha! It's so confused! It looks cute! Hahaha!" And she continued laughing, much to Yoite's annoyance. After a few minutes, she calmed down and wiped the tears from her eyes. "I'm sorry, Yoite-kun. That won't happen again. You just looked so funny! Like a little kid."

"Haruki-san, are you a ninja?" Yoite looked at Haruki as if she were someone completely unknown to him. But then, she truthfully was still a stranger to him.

She shook her head. "No, not really. My Sofu borrowed me for five years and enforced me to learn nindo. From age five to age ten, I lived with him and the ways of the ninja. But five years isn't really enough to be a full fledged ninja, right? And I was only five, so I don't remember much of what he taught me… At that time, I really wanted to be a part of Nabari."

"You're a part of Nabari, now."

"What? How?"

"I'm a Kairoushuu kira user from Iga Village, and I killed so many from the Front world, as well as many leaders from Nabari."

"So, what you're saying is that you're a wanted man in both worlds?" Yoite nodded. "You sure don't seem at all phased."

"I don't care. Now that Miharu is gone, nothing at all matters."

"Not even your life?" He nodded. "Well that's stupid," she said and laughed. Haruki stood and Yoite looked up at her, surprised and confused. "Just because someone close to you dies doesn't mean you should stop caring about things. My parents died, my grandparents died… Hell, now that I really think about it, I'm an orphan now, aren't I? I have no living relatives, all I had was my family and a friend. Never needed more, really. But, you see, just because your world is falling apart, doesn't mean you should, too. Why not try to piece it back together? It might work."

"I can't do that."

"Why the hell not? You have kira. There isn't anything you can't get."

"There are things that not even a kira user can obtain."

"Like life. Am I correct? Maybe love, too? Oh, but you'd kill the person who didn't love you back, wouldn't you? I understand your sadness and despair, Yoite-kun. The things you want can't be granted, those are the things only the Shinrabansho can give. Let's see, when was the last time the Shinrabansho was revived… um, ten years…?"

"A few months ago."

"Oh, really? That was about the time I was rejected by Oxford University… Who was it?"

"Rokujo Miharu." Haruki sat back down and grabbed Yoite's shoulder.

"Are you serious? I have the dead Shinrabansho in my house?" she shouted and then fell backwards onto the floor. Yoite moved himself toward the wall, away from Haruki. "How could he have died? He was the Shinrabansho! How!" She seemed to be in a fit of confusion until Yoite said something irrelevant.

"Why are you named Haruki? Isn't that a boy's name?" Haruki shot up and stared at Yoite.

"Shut it, Yoite-kun. Or else I won't give you anymore ki." Haruki bit her tongue and began to back away from Yoite. "I mean… um…"

"You're giving me ki? Why?" Yoite stood and began to walk towards Haruki. "Why are you giving life to someone who doesn't even think anything of you? Why someone you hardly know? Why a person who wants to die? Why me? Why, Haruki! Why me! Is it because I saved you from a beating? It's just a beating! You face it! Ninjas face their enemies to fight! I fought! I've lived to see my fair share of deaths, Haruki! Why did you choose me!" Yoite crumbled in a heap on the floor. "I want to die… without Miharu, I want to die… Haruki-san…" Haruki didn't know what to do. Yoite was acting as if a child would and she didn't think it was right to treat a young man as a child.

"Yoite… kun?" Her voice stuttered.

"Haruki-san, why? Why would you do such a thing?" He wanted to cry, now.

"Yoite-kun, calm down." Haruki got on all four's and crawled next to the trembling Yoite.

"Haruki-san… Miharu is…" He began to cry. Haruki rubbed his back and said to him:

"Shh… It's okay, Yoite-kun. Everything's going to go up from here, okay? I promise. You won't ever have to use kira again. I'll protect you. You won't have to worry about your life, I'll give you mine, Yoite-kun."

"Why did you give me your ki?"

Haruki giggled nervously. "Because I felt like I should. It's true that the main reason may be because you saved me from that beating and the beatings that were to come, but also because it just felt like something I should do." There was a pause where Yoite calmed down and Haruki crossed her legs. "Is there something wrong with keeping you alive--"

"Kira--" Haruki pressed her finger on Yoite's lips to silence him.

"Let me finish, Yoite-kun. Is there something wrong with keeping you alive if you're not going to use kira?" He looked at her strangely.

"Not use kira?" Haruki nodded.

"Yep. Never use kira ever again, Yoite-kun."

"But, I… Give up kira?"

"Are you afraid of life without it? Don't you have enough trust in your own skill to fight without kira?" Yoite looked away and Haruki frowned. "Yoite-kun, listen to me!" She grabs his face and makes him look at her. "You must never use kira again. I don't want you to waste what was given to you! I give you my ki to live, not to kill. Got it?" There was silence. "Do you understand what I'm saying to you, Yoite-kun!" She begins to shake him when he breaks free and stands.

"I understand, but I don't think I can do that."

"Well, can you at least try?" Haruki looked hopeful as Yoite looked down at her. He sighed.

"I'll try."

"Hooray! Now why don't we celebrate the new Yoite-kun by having something to eat? What would you like?" She began descending the stairs, a wide smile on her lips. Yoite sighed and followed her.

"What was that soup that you made earlier?"

"Hm? That stew you made me knock over? It was motsunabe. But I can make all sorts of other stuff! Except, I don't have a stove, so it'll have to be made in a pot or pan over the fire, and I can't necessarily fry well without a stove."

"I'll have whatever you can make."

"How about nikujaga! With some rice and miso soup? Would you like that?"

"Why not the motsunabe? Don't you have any more?"

"No, I specifically made enough for one person. I'm skilled at one serving dishes since I live alone." Haruki gestured to the seating area. "Please take a seat while I prepare the food."

"I'm sorry," he mumbled.

"Hm? You're sorry? For what?"

"For wasting food."

"Oh, that's alright! Food is always being wasted. It's being eaten by a dying person, human food being given to a cat, or being spilt on the floor. I guess the motsunabe was just added into what's being collected around the world." There was an odd silence.

"That wasn't a very nice thought."

"It wasn't?" Haruki seemed surprised. "I guess I better delete that thought then, eh?" she quickly said with a smile and slipped into the kitchen.

ONE SIDE

Yoite sat on the loveseat and looked at the fireplace across from him. It had no fire but there were plenty of ashes, meaning it hadn't been cleaned for a while.

"Yoite-kun!" Haruki opened the kitchen door and smiled. "What would you like in your miso?"

He was stumped for a moment. He wasn't very good with open ended choices like this. "What do you have?" he managed to say.

Haruki thought for a moment. "Um, konbu seaweed, scallion, daikon, potatoes, eggplants, and mushrooms."

"I'll have scallion and konbu seaweed."

"Okay, I'll only be a moment." She went back in the kitchen. Only a moment? Doesn't it take a while to cook? Haruki suddenly came out of the kitchen with two trays of ingredients and a few dishes. Yoite stood in a rush.

"Would you like some help?" He was surprised with himself at his own offer and brought his fingers to his lips. That was something he'd normally say to casual people he knew. He's known Haruki for only about a few hours. Maybe it was the fact that she gave him her ki that he's acting like this. After all, it was her own ki that was given to him.

"No, it's alright, Yoite-kun. You can just rest. You need it so that my ki can fully settle with yours. If it doesn't, you may end up like your kira targets." Haruki looked at Yoite with a warning smile before returning to the kitchen. He sat down. How does she know that? Now that Yoite thinks about it, how does an armature ninja know so much about kira and the way ki works?

Haruki came back with another two trays, this time with pots and spoons and chopsticks. "Haruki-san?"

"What's up, Yoite-kun?" She began with lighting the fire and started making the white rice.

"Are you telling me the truth?" She began laughing.

"What are you talking about, Yoite-kun? What truth?" Was she hiding something?

"You knew about the effects of kira, despite only being taught nindo for five years. And you know how ki works, and how to give someone else your own ki. How do you know?"

FOUR SIDE -OMNIPRESENT-

Haruki set the small plate of miso paste and chopsticks down on the table. She crawled across the floor to kneel in front of Yoite, keeping her eyes hidden. Slowly and carefully, she reached for his hands. He pulled them away quickly, saying, "Don't touch me."

"Don't worry, don't be afraid. I know what's under there," she whispered and tried for his hands again. This time, he did not pull them away. Haruki took off Yoite's gloves, which he had put back on, to reveal his decaying, cold hands. She held them and occasionally glanced up at him. "Your hands. They're decaying, Yoite-kun. They're so cold, even when you wear gloves." Her mouth was a firm line when she stopped speaking. She looked up at Yoite's sad and surprised eyes, and raised her hand to rest on his cheek. "Yoite-kun, you're a sad young man. A dear friend of yours has passed. You've killed so many lives, seen so much death. Your life was chiseled away as punishment for your crimes. Your senses are leaving you slowly. You're at the brink of breakdown and you want to die. Yoite-kun, it is now time for a new start; you're too young to die. Tomorrow, we'll bury Miharu-kun outside and I'll chisel him a gravestone the day after. I gave you new life, Yoite-kun. Please put it to good use." She let go and got back to cooking, leaving a shocked Yoite sitting on the sofa, staring at her.

After Haruki had cooked, and she and Yoite ate, she started to feel tired. Yoite had not spoken once since the talk Haruki gave him, and was often seen staring out into space or head down in thought. Even when he was eating he seemed to be thinking hard. About what, Haruki didn't know.

She stood and stretched. "I'm starting to get tired." She yawned. "I'll clean up and then get upstairs to finish my application…" She stopped everything as she was reaching for a tray. "Actually, legally, I'm dead now, so I don't really have to submit a form." Yoite peeked up at her but didn't say anything. She laughed lightly and continued with the cleaning. She managed to take all the trays back inside and wipe the table with a cloth and mop the floor around the seating area within an hour. "I'll be upstairs if you need me. You can see Miharu-kun again, if you'd like. It's not like there's anything stopping you. I'm sorry, but because Miharu-kun has taken the only guest bed, you'll have to sleep here tonight. You can use this quilt here and I'll bring down a pillow from upstairs." She lifted the quilt that was folded and laid on the backrest of the longer couch.

Haruki left and returned with the pillow she had talked about, and placed it next to an armrest of the longer couch. "Here." She looked at her watch and clicked her tongue. "It's 21:23. You'd best get some rest soon. I'm probably not going to bed for a little while, so if there's anything you need, feel free to come up and talk to me, okay?" Yoite nodded. Haruki smiled and left.

ONE SIDE

Yoite sat there by himself, his gloves back on, the fire burning no more than ten feet away from him. He was thinking about what Haruki had said. He wondered how much ki did she give him. A few years? Ten years? Only a few more months?

He shook his head and went to see Miharu. After a while, he began to feel tired so he walked to the longer couch and lied down. He pulled the quilt over himself and laid there for a while, looking around the room and occasionally glancing at the fire until it burnt out about an hour later.

Finally, he closed his eyes and went to sleep.


	4. Chapter 3

TWO SIDE

Haruki awoke to the sound of her alarm clock. She turned over and smashed the thing down to turn it off. She faced up and looked at the ceiling before getting out of bed and grabbing her housecoat and towel. She creeps downstairs and into the washroom to get the bucket of water and then hooks it above the fireplace. She sets the fire burning and sits on the loveseat, waiting for the water to boil so she cold have a bath. She wearily glanced at the clock to see it was 6:13.

A whimper was heard and she turned to the sleeping Yoite on the couch adjacent to her. "Miharu…" She smiles.

"You'll always have Miharu-kun in your heart and dreams, Yoite-kun."

ONE SIDE

Yoite opens his eyes to a warm room and a fire burning. At first he is surprised of his surroundings, but remembered the events of yesterday and frowns. He takes off the blanket and heads upstairs to Haruki's room. He sees she's not there, so he heads back downstairs. As he opens the door to the living room the door to the washroom opens, out comes Haruki in a housecoat and wet hair tied back in a ponytail. Yoite freezes.

"Oh, hello, Yoite-kun. Good morning! Would you like some breakfast?" she chimes happily. He looks away from her. "What's wrong?"

"Can you put some clothes on?"

"I'm not bothered, if that's what you're thinking. I'm not really shy, either… So I can just cook--" That wasn't it.

"Put your clothes on." Yoite's voice was more firm, like an order. Haruki was surprised.

"Okay, Yoite-kun," she said and left for upstairs. He plopped himself on the couch and closed his eyes. He didn't want to see that. No, not so soon after Miharu had died. He held his face in his gloved hands and thought long and hard about what to do next. What could he do? He didn't know how long he had to live, so what's the pointing planning? Haruki came through the doors and Yoite looked up at her. Again, she was wearing stylish clothing.

"Better."

"Yoite-kun, what would you like for breakfast?"

"What do you have? What can you make?"

"How about some natto and chawanmushi?"

"Sure."

"Okay! I'll get right on it!" She rushed into the kitchen and was out within ten minutes. Right away, she began cooking.

"Haruki-san, how much life did you give me?"

"Do you really want to know, Yoite-kun?"

"Yes."

She sighed. "Half." Yoite stood up immediately and was about to speak when Haruki raised her hand and gestured for Yoite to sit down. He did so. "Calm down. It's not as bad as you may think it is. The average Japanese female lives to be around eighty-five or eighty-six. And I've already lived around eighteen years of it, so I only gave you… um--"

"Thirty-four years."

"Oh, okay. I was actually just thinking of thirty years. Thanks for extending it by four years." Her voice was still cheery. How could she keep up such a face when talking about her own death?

"Why did you give me half of your life, Haruki-san? I don't want to live that long!"

"Oh, shush. You're not going to live that much longer than me. By the time I die you're going to be… um… How old are you, Yoite-kun?"

"I'm almost seventeen. Our ages stay the same. I'll be fifty-one and you'll be fifty-two. We'll die in the same year."

"Oh! So you're a year younger than me and you're better at math! Never knew I'd see the day that'd happen. But then, I just suck at mental math. I always have to write everything down." Haruki took out the two cups of chawanmushi and began to work on the natto. She took two polystyrene boxes and opened them and dumped the contents into a pot. She took the two polystyrene bowls of rice and dumped the rice into ceramic bowls, which she placed near the fire to heat them.

Yoite stared at her. "Instant natto?"

"What do you mean by 'instant'? This takes about ten minutes to do!" She handed Yoite a cup of chawanmushi. "Here, you can eat this for now. I'll give you your natto when it's ready." He took it and began eating. Haruki didn't eat.

"Why don't you eat?"

"I have to keep watch over this so nothing bad happens. Anything being cooked over a live fire must have an eye kept over them at all times. Did you know that?" Yoite nodded.

FOUR SIDE -OMNIPRESENT-

Over the course of one day, Yoite and Haruki managed to get some things done. They buried Miharu and said a few prayers, filled more buckets of water from the nearby stream, did laundry, and went berry picking. Haruki stole some gas from a nearby parked car and put it in the electricity generator at her home. By the end of the day the two had managed to become decent friends, and at least act friendly around each other. This reminded Yoite of how his relationship with Miharu had started.

"Haruki-san, what do you plan on doing?" Yoite laid down on the longer couch and gazed into the fire. Haruki sat up from her lazy position on the lovecouch to look at him.

"What do you mean?" Yoite looked at her.

"From this point on, what do you plan on doing with your life, Haruki-san? Isn't your front world self dead?" She thought about it and crossed her legs and arms.

"I'll just be with you until my time ends, I guess. There's not really anything else to do…"

"Why don't you try to make a new life?"

"Because most things need a birth certificate and mine now has a certificate of death to go along with it, revoking any of it's meaning." Haruki's words were a bit rough. Silence ensued.

"Haruki-san--" She stood up.

"It's getting late. I'm going upstairs. I probably won't go to sleep for a while, so you can come up and talk to me if you need something. Good night, Yoite-kun." Haruki turned and left.

ONE SIDE

Now was Yoite's time to think quietly to himself. He had another thirty-four years to go, how would he spend it? Haruki seemed to want to spend it with him, would he allow it? There wasn't anything generally unpleasant about the woman, but she did seem to care too much about things --like him, for example. And she clings to things too easily. But, she does cook good food and she seems to like cleaning. Her housekeeping techniques were far greater than Yukimi's, who let it be a complete mess before even thinking about cleaning. She had good hospitality; she was kind and understanding of Yoite when he was depressed about Miharu.

But, despite the cons in his thinking, did Yoite approve of her? Did he think her travel-worthy? Her kindness crossed her better judgment, leaving her too naïve in Nabari, meaning she would be a hassle to take care of. She was too comfy in her environment, which led Yoite to think that if she were out of her element she'd crumble. This added more onto the task of caring for her in the first place. Because she's dead in the Front world, doesn't that mean all the money she had saved up was no invalid? So she was poor. It was early Fall and Winter was fast approaching, they wouldn't be able to plant and harvest anything recent.

Yoite stopped his thinking for a moment. He looked at the clock and saw it was 23:48. He had been thinking for forty-eight minutes. Haruki had been absent for forty-eight minutes. And now, he heard her crying upstairs. A bit startled by the crying, Yoite didn't do anything. He just sat there, listening to her cry. But then he could hear faint, inaudible mumbles and he became curious. He decided to pay her a visit. Slowly, he opened the door and climbed the stairs, careful as to not make any sounds. He saw her lying on her bed, holding what looked like a giant panda pillow and crying.

TWO SIDE

Haruki stood and stretched. She had been reading for half an hour and now it was beginning to really get late. She put the book on her desk for her to read the next morning and changed her clothes. She tied her hair in two braids on either side of her head and laid down. She didn't pull the covers up, nor did she set her clock. She just laid there and began thinking of what to do next.

She knew she was useless in Nabari and that she would only hold Yoite back if he wished to go traveling. There wasn't really anything she could do except cook and clean. The most prominent lessons her Sofu had taught her were the ones of Kendo, but that meant nothing now. She doesn't have any special skills besides housework, so there would be nothing super amazing that only she could do.

Haruki stopped thinking. There was something that she was special at. There were a few things she was special at. She grabbed onto a large panda pillow above her head and squeezed it tightly as the memories began to fill her mind. She remembered the men's hands slip slowly up her leg, starting with below her knee up to the hem of her skirt. She remembered the feeling of dark despair as they would wrap their arms around her shoulders and hold her to them. But this was no loving or caring hold, it was a grasp that told her not to run. Of course, she wouldn't run anyway since she wanted the money, so the warm wraps were meaningless. There was one in particular that was very vivid and disturbing that she didn't want to get into but forced its way onto her mind's stage.

THREE SIDE -DREAM STATE: Haruki-

Haruki was sitting by herself in a corner of the bar. She had been here many times with may different men that had promised her money for her touch. It wasn't exactly something she was proud of, nor something she really wanted to do, but she wanted to feel important. Even though she, otherwise, knew that they were just using her while on rebound or to cover her face with another loved one in their minds.

A man walked into the bar wearing a black suit and his black loose hair tied back in a tiny ponytail. He looked around the bar before his eyes met Haruki's. Immediately, she started to freeze up. New people is this business always made her a little bit shy because she never knew what they wanted. Knowing what a person wanted meant she could please them better and earn herself more money. The man walked towards her and sat next to Haruki. "Hello," he said.

"Good evening, sir."

"Are you Linesworth Annie?" This was her stage name.

"Yes, I am. What would you like?" The man gave a light chuckle and wrapped his arm around her.

"Ahaha. My name is Kuroga Daisuke. I'd like nothing in particular… just relax and do what comes naturally." This surprised Haruki. She never had a customer to tell her to 'do what comes naturally.' They all had ideas of how they wanted her to please them. But, of course, her one rule was…

"Kuroga-sama, you are new. I assume you don't know my rule." He tilted his head in her direction, signaling that he was indeed listening. She continued. "The one rule I have, is no sex." He laughed.

"Oh, I know. I had heard of you from some friends of mine. Karada Sasuke and Ichigawa Mamoru." Haruki nodded her head. Suddenly, Daisuke tensed up and his grip on her firmed. "Come with me," he ordered and began to pull her away before she could protest. The barkeeper, Namawe Ichijo, sent a steely glance in Daisuke and Haruki's direction, watching them leave. He had seen Haruki with many different men, but none of them had ever taken her away, making Ichijo tense and worry for the girl.

"Where are we headed, Kuroga-sama?" He didn't answer. He merely pulled her down a block or two and then pushed her into an alleyway. "Kuroga-sama?" He pushed her up against a wall and placed both hands on either side of her body. She couldn't see his eyes. "Kuroga-sama?" she stuttered innocently. "What are you doing?"

"Like I said, do what comes naturally…" His hand slid down the wall and then rested itself on the back of her thigh. Haruki flinched. Daisuke's hand began to slide up her leg, moved to the front, and then continued it's trail up her dress. She wanted to scream, she wanted to shout, but she, also, wanted her money.

"You're going to pay me for this, right?" she mumbled as his hand crept slowly up.

"Of course, Annie-chan. I'm going to pay you handsomely." His hand suddenly pulled away and wrapped around her waist. He pulled her firmly to his body. "Tonight, you're going to be my Hanako-chan, okay?" His other hand groped her. She winced. "You see, Hanako-chan and I are in a fight and she's thinking about a divorce. I haven't seen her in six months. I haven't smelt her, I haven't touched her… There's been no contact between us and I get really horny just thinking about her… Annie-chan."

"Tonight, I'm your Hanako-chan?"

"That's right. I can do anything I want with you, right?"

"Except sex, Kuroga-sama." He chuckled darkly.

"Oh, yeah. That factor. But besides that, you're going to do anything I say, right?" Hesitantly, she nodded, and was very afraid of what he'd make her do tonight. She wasn't even sure if he was going to stay true to her rule. He felt her all around. "You're a bit smaller than Hanako-chan, but I think you'll do quite nicely…" He suddenly took her face and slammed his lips into hers. This was when she could taste the alcohol in his mouth. She knew he was drunk and fear began to make it's way through her body from her stomach outwards. This man was dangerous with people like her, especially when people like Haruki had rules that drunk men usually don't follow. Daisuke raised his face from Haruki's. "What's the matter, Hanako-chan? Don't you love me? Why aren't you kissing back?" Haruki detested herself.

"Sorry, Daiski. I'm just feeling sleepy." He chuckled and whispered into her ear:

"You even have the nickname down," and began to kiss her again. Haruki forced herself to kiss back. At that moment, she hated what she had become. But, like she had written in her to-burn journal, she liked to feel important. She liked the attention, even if she had to do dirty crimes like what she was doing with Daisuke. At a moment's notice, he began to push her into the wall, squishing her between the wall and him. It wasn't comfortable.

"Annie-chan!" Daisuke was ripped off of Haruki and she was pulled behind someone. She opened her eyesand saw it was Ichijo.

"Namawe-san? What are you doing here?" She stared at him, but he didn't answer. He had his arm out protectively between Haruki and Daisuke.

"What? Who are you?" Daisuke had asked roughly. "We were just going to get to the fun part…"

"Back off from Annie-chan! She doesn't work with drunk customers!" Ichijo shouted.

"Namawe-san, it's alright. He said he was going to pay me a lot of money… It might be worth the extra effort…"

"Shut up, Annie. You don't know what you're saying. Wait, you knew this man was drunk?" She nodded.

"I did. Ever since he kissed me and I tasted the alcohol."

"Then, why?"

"Like she said, she thought what I was going to pay her to be worth the effort!" Daisuke spat on the ground. "No way am I paying her now. Our little fun was interrupted. Bye, brats." He turned and walked away. Ichijo loosened his stance and turned to Haruki.

"Annie, are you alright?"

"I didn't get paid… I didn't satisfy a customer…" Haruki began to cry. "I wasn't kind to him… I wasn't kind enough…"

"Annie! Is that what all this is about? What did your Ojii-san do to you? You're obsessed with making other's happy!" His raised voice only made Haruki cry. He sighed. "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to tell Travis again…"

"No, Ichijo! Please! Don't tell Travis! Last time I got lucky! Surely he'll be more stern on me!"

"I don't have a choice, do I?" Haruki sobbed.

FOUR SIDE -OMNIPRESENT-

"Haruki-san?" She shot up and looked at a hesitant Yoite at the stairs.

"Yoite-kun!" She quickly wiped away her tears. "What are you still doing up? It's late. You should be resting."

"Why were you crying?" Haruki stared at him wide eyed. There was silence and tension in the room as they looked at each other. "Haruki-san?" Haruki broke out in light laughter. He stared at her like an alien. "Haruki-san? What's so funny?"

"Hahaha. It's nothing. You might lean about it someday, but not anytime soon. Get some sleep, Yoite-kun. I plan to clean up the guest room so you can sleep here tomorrow night." She shoed him away and locked the door. "Never knew I would use this lock…" Haruki walked back up to her room and laid down on her bed. She set her alarm clock and turned off the night lights shaped like stars, suns, and moons. She pulled up her covers and went to sleep.


End file.
